The Distant Sound of Waves
by Awesome Rapidash
Summary: Based on Harvest Moon DS. Leia the mermaid was washed into the human world in a violent spring storm. Daryl rescued her and now she lives in a tub in the scientist's basement. What will she experience as time goes by? Ch. 5 is up, please read and review!
1. Daryl and The Lab

_**A/N:**__ This story focuses on Leia and her perspectives on life in the human world. _

_**Disclaimer:**__ I don't own Harvest Moon, so don't sue me. _

_**The Distant Sound of Waves**_

_**Chapter 1: Daryl and the Lab**_

The storm started out innocently enough. Many clouds blanketed the sky above. The raindrops fell gently to the ground and on the water, at first causing small waves.

However it was quickly becoming apparent to anyone unlucky enough to be in the area that this wasn't going to be another simple mid summer thunderstorm. In fact, it was going to be something that would remain in the mind of one mermaid for some time to come.

As morning passed in to early afternoon the storm seemed to be growing in strength, not weakening as one might think a storm normally would do. It seemed, to the casual observer, that it was feeding on some seemingly unknown force, allowing it to continue to gain strength and momentum.

As the main body of the storm matured, it began to whip the winds up into a furious gale, churning the sea into a frothy seething expanse.

Brilliant flashes of lightning blazed across the dark ominous sky, followed by deafening crashes of thunder. Heavy sheets of rain poured from the forbidding sky dramatically reducing the visibility both above and below the oceans surface.

Beneath all of this turmoil a lone mermaid struggled to return home. She'd left the safety of her friend's home only an hour before, hoping to beat the rapidly approaching weather.

As she struggled to swim, she could feel the oceans currents tossing and turning her about in a dizzying manner. She knew that home was in the general direction that she was currently swimming; at least she hoped it was. She paused momentarily, hoping to get her bearings, but the reduced visibility only allowed her to see about ten feet in any direction. Determined, she continued forward, hoping that she would soon be in the safety of her home. However, she was beginning to feel the effects of her struggles. She felt herself weakening; her strength felt like it was being sapped out of her like a sponge.

It was then that she noticed something alarming; the depth of the water was steadily decreasing! She quickly realized that the heavy currents were forcing her towards the shore! Desperately she turned and tried to swim back out to the safety of deeper waters. She fought with all her remaining strength against the swiftly moving current, but found it to be futile. Fear began to rise in the young mermaid as she watched the coral reef below her become ever closer.

It was then that the ocean decided to play a cruel trick on the finned girl, sending a wave crashing into the water directly above her! The resulting rapid downward flow forced the girl into the reef with a crushing force. She gasped in pain as the water rolled her along the ocean floor. After what seemed like an eternity to the green haired girl, she was finally deposited near the shallow depths of the shoreline.

Her energy nearly all but spent and in pain, she felt herself being tossed helplessly onto the sandy beach, spit out and rejected by the very ocean she had so lovingly called home.

Gasping in pain and unable to move she curled up into a protective ball and closed her eyes, awaiting the awful fate that would surely befall any mermaid unfortunate enough to find themselves in the human world.

* * *

The following morning broke clear and sunny, and as the sun began its morning trek across the sky over Forget Me Not valley a mermaid stirs slowly as the suns warming rays caressed her skin. Opening her eyes she quickly remembered what had transpired the night before. In an instant her mind began to race; she was in the human world! All she could think about was getting back to the safety of the ocean.

She sat up and looked around. To her relief the shoreline was deserted. Gingerly she began to push herself up, but stopped as a wave of intense pain rolled through her body. It was then that she remembered her collision with the reef the night before. A quick inspection of her body revealed many small cuts and scratch along her upper body as well as her tail. But what had her attention was a large purplish burse on her left side. It was that bused area that seemed to cause her the greatest amount of discomfort.

She was so consumed with her desire to return to the sparkling azure water that she didn't even notice the human slowly approaching her. It wasn't until it spoke that she realized her worst fears had come true. She had been found by a human!

The human approached the frightened girl slowly, almost as if he could sense that she was afraid of him. "Do not fear," the human, who the mermaid noted looked quite odd, spoke. "I do not wish to harm you."

"S… stay away from me!" the girl rasped as she attempted to push herself back towards the safety of the water's edge. But the pain from her injuries was just too overwhelming and she stopped a mere ten feet from the safety of the oceans azure waters. Terrified about what might happen next she curled herself up into a tight ball and prepared herself for whatever might happen.

The human walked over and knelt down at her side. Without touching the frightened young sea girl, he carefully examined her injuries. It was apparent that she'd suffered some superficial wounds, but what concerned him the most was the large bruise on her midsection.

"I think you may have some broken ribs," he said plainly. A gentle smile appeared on his face as he looked at the finned girl. "My name is Daryl, and I think I can help you. Do you have a name?"

The young mermaid remained silent, not sure of how to react to this human. She knew from what she'd been told that humans were evil creatures, interested in only themselves and nothing else.

"You need not fear me," he told her, trying to sound as reassuring as her could. "I mean you no harm. Please tell me your name."

The mermaid turned her head and looked up at the man kneeling beside her. "My name is Leia." She spoke softly before burying her head back into her chest.

"Well Leia, I don't think you can safely return to the ocean in your current state. I have a home near here that I can treat you at, that is, if you don't mind."

Leia considered things for a moment. It didn't seem like she had much of a choice but to accept the human's offer. _"He seems friendly. Perhaps the rumors are not entirely true and not all humans are evil."_ She pondered before looking up at the human, now known to her as Daryl. She looked at the waiting ocean just beyond her grasp and slumped to the soft sandy shore. Faced with what seemed like no alternative she looked back up and replied. "Yes, I'll accept your offer."

"Good. Now relax and I'll carry you to my home," Daryl advised.

Still quite scared but knowing that she couldn't escape, Leia did as instructed, allowing the human to lift her up from the beach and carry further into the human world. She watched as the ocean disappeared from sight, tears began to fill her blue eyes as she was carried way from the safety of the ocean.

In spite of his attempts to make the trip to his home as gentle as possible, the weight of the girl in his arms caused Daryl to slip and Leia to tumble from his arms. Intense pain racked her body as she fell onto the grass covered ground. The man hurried over to her and lifted her up, causing intense waves of pain to course through her body. The awful pain was too much for the girl to bear and she lost consciousness.

* * *

When Leia regained conscious she found herself immersed in cool saltwater. A temporary feeling of relief washed over the mermaid. _"Was that all just a bad dream?"_ She wondered curiously. But when she went to move a jolt of pain reminded her that it was no dream. No, in fact it was all too real.

She blinked her eyes open and looked around. At first everything appeared blurry, but as her vision cleared she found that she was in some kind of a water filled tank. She looked to her right and noticed that this particular side of the enclosure was transparent. She swam slowly over and looked out, spotted Daryl with his back turned to her. She stretched out her orange and purple tailfin and swam slowly to the waters surface. The sound of her surfacing drew Daryl's attention and after placing some type of metallic object on the table in front of him he turned and faced her. With a smile he walked over and stood in front of her.

"I see you are finally awake. Your injuries we not as severe as I had first thought and you should be able to return to the sea in about a week," he explained carefully.

"Y…, you will allow me to return to my home?" The mermaid questioned curiously.

"Of course, why would I not allow you to return? The ocean is the proper place for a mermaid after all," Daryl replied.

"I see," the green haired girl said simply. "It's just that the legends all say that once a mermaid is brought into the human world that her chances of ever returning to the ocean were impossibly small. After all, humans aren't supposed to allow us to return once they've captured us," Leia added sadly. "I remember my mom telling me that many times."

"Do not judge all humans based on what you read or what you legends might say," Daryl retorted. "I must say though, that as a man of science I would be most appreciative of any information about your world that you would be willing to give me."

Leia moved about uncomfortably in her tub. "I… umm, I really don't want to talk about it right now."

"That's understandable," the scientist replied. "But perhaps sometime before you go?" he added with in a hopeful tone.

"I'll think about it," Leia responded. "I'm still not quite sure if I trust you or if you are just putting up a front."

* * *

For the next couple of days Leia spent the bulk of her time curled up at the bottom of the stark white tank, only rising to the surface to eat. Homesickness racked the young girl's mind, causing her to sob softly each night as she tried to sleep.

Finally, half way through the fifth day she forced her self to swim to the surface. Looking around she found Daryl hunched over at a bench near her tub. He seemed to be performing some sort of work. Even after several attempts to explain what he did, Leia still had difficulty understanding what exactly it was that a scientist did. He looked up from the notes he was writing and gave the green haired girl a smile.

"Hello Leia, how are you feeling today?" he asked curiously.

"I'm feeling a little weak, but otherwise I'm as well as can be expected," she replied trying to sound as friendly as possible.

"That's good. At this rate you should be able to return to the ocean very soon."

Leia gave him a small smile and played nervously with the purple seashell accents in her hair. "Um, about that, I've been thinking. You have shown me kindness and you have helped me to tend to my injuries. Perhaps the legends are wrong about the human world."

Daryl looked at the green haired girl with a small look of understanding. "I see," he said simply.

Leia nodded. "I was thinking… well… perhaps if it's possible I would like to remain here for a little while."

The scientist looked curiously at his fishy guest. "Well I have no trouble allowing you to remain here. I am however curious, why do you wish to remain here and not to return home?" he inquired.

"I suppose its curiosity," the green haired girl replied. "All I've ever heard or been taught while growing up was that humans were evil beings, something to be avoided at all costs. But during my short time here with you, I've been treated well. With that in mind I would like to experience a little more of your world. To see for myself what the human world is really like."

"That's fine. As I said I have no issue with you remaining here for as long as you'd like," Daryl responded. "I only ask that in return you share some on the wonders of the mermaid world with me."

"That's understandable. I will try to answer your questions as best I can. The only thing I ask of you is that you keep my presence here a secret. While you might be friendly, I'm not sure of how other humans might react to me."

"Of course, I can appreciate your concern about being detected. Rest assured I will keep your presence here strictly to myself," Daryl replied in a positive voice.

Leia smiled back at the odd looking man before tuning and swimming back down to the bottom of her temporary living quarters to relax. As she did so, thoughts of home once again invade the girl's mind. This time however, she suppressed the urge to cry. Instead, she felt a feeling of excitement rising within her, excitement at becoming the first mermaid in her family to explore the realm of the human world.

_So Leia's adventure in Forget Me Not Valley is just beginning. What will happen as time goes on? Did you enjoy or did you hate this so far? Please take a moment to leave me your feedback, in a review. Ja ne _


	2. A New Friend

_**A/N:**__ This story focuses on Leia and her life in Forget Me Not Valley. _

_**Disclaimer:**__ I don't own Harvest Moon, so don't sue me. _

_Thank you to the following awesome readers for you reviews of the last chapter. __**Pause11, lumanova03, Saki Hanajima-chan, Moonlit Dreaming, Momo-chan12, roxas-kh, **__and __**LuanrStar **__you guys rock the house!_

_**The Distant Sound of Waves**_

_**Chapter 2: A New Friend**_

Spring had made its transition to summer in Forget Me Not Valley and Leia had made a transition of sorts herself. She was now feeling somewhat comfortable living in the human world. Well, at least as comfortable as she could be given the fact that she only had the relatively small confines of her saltwater tank to swim in. Leia sighed softly as she swam to the bottom of her temporary home. Settling herself in as best she could she curled up into a ball and attempted to sleep.

Sunlight filtered into the basement as yet another sunny day dawned in the valley. Leia stirred for her sleep as the sounds of Daryl working in the lab reached her. The mermaid pushed herself up from the hard concrete floor of her watery home and swam to the surface.

The sounds of splashing water caught Daryl's attention. He turned and smiled at the pretty green haired girl. "Good morning Leia. Did you have a restful nights sleep?" the scientist asked curiously.

Leia looked over at the eccentric looking man and smiled as best she could. "It was alright I suppose," she answered softly. "I mean, it wasn't my bed back home but..."

Daryl placed the test tube he was holding back down on the table and walked over to the edge of the tank. It was apparent by the look on his fishy guest's face that she wasn't very happy.

"Is there something that I can do to help you to improve your living conditions?" the scientist asked hopefully.

"Well, I'm not so sure about that," Leia sighed in reply. "I mean, it's not as though you could somehow bring my bed to me," she added softly.

The scientist paused for a moment as he considered the possible options available to him. "You know what?" Daryl began. "I think I may have a solution to your problem. That is, if you trust me enough to do this."

A curious look filled the young mermaids face. "Of course I trust you Daryl; after all you've helped me greatly and remained silent about my presence here. What do you have in mind?"

"Well, I would like to introduce you to another human. He's a friend of mine that I'd like you to meet," Daryl explained. "He recently moved here to the valley to take over the operations of his late Grandfather's farm."

A concerned look filled the girl's face. "You wish to introduce me to another human? Ah…, um, are you sure that he can be trusted?" Leia asked nervously. "I mean, what if he tells someone about me?" she added in a shaky voice.

"I think Jack can be trusted," Daryl replied. "He seems to be a good person, at least in my mind that is."

Leia sank back down into her tub. She needed to think about the idea for a moment before she answered. After several minutes she returned to the surface and looked at the scientist standing before her. "Alright. If you say that he can be trusted then you can tell him," the green haired girl replied. "But can you tell me a little about him first?" Leia asked, sounding rather curious.

"Of course I can," Daryl answered with a smile on his face. "He's about five feet six inches tall and rather thin. He has brown hair which he prefers to wear under an orange and blue baseball cap. He has brown eyes and I believe he told me that he's 23 years old," Daryl explained while looked at the girl in front of him. "If I may ask, how old are you?"

A slight blush appeared on the girl's face. "I'm 24 cycles of the seasons old," she replied softly.

Daryl gave the girl a curious look. "Cycles of the seasons, is that how you tell years?" He questioned intently.

Leia nodded. "Of course, how else is there?"

Daryl nodded. "I suppose that the cycles of the seasons can be compared to what we call a year," he explained. "Since you said that you are 24, both you and Jack appear to be similar in age," the scientist observed. "Perhaps you two will become friends."

"So how can this human help me?" Leia asked curiously. "I mean, I don't even know what a farmer is. How can he do much to help me after all?"

"That may not be completely true." Daryl interjected. "He may be able to help me to improve your living environment. From what I've observed, he's quite skilled with his hands, so perhaps he could start by building you a bed to sleep on."

A smile appeared on the girl's face as she though of sleeping on a comfortable bed. "A bed would be nice," she said happily. "When do you plan on introducing him to me?"

Daryl pondered the question for several minutes before smiling back at the mermaid. "I often see him around the valley, I'll ask him then," he replied plainly. "I might even see him later today and if I do, I'll ask him to come by."

"That sounds good," Leia answered happily. "But I have to admit, I'm rather nervous about meeting another human. However, if he's as kind as you've described then I'm sure I'll be happy to meet him."

"Alright, I'll see what I can do," Daryl said as he returned to his workbench.

Leia watched as the eccentric scientist added some sort of red and blue liquids together in a clear container and mixed then up. He then poured the purplish colored concoction into a larger container and placed a red colored cover on top of the container. _"I wonder what manner of experiments Daryl performs?"_ Leia mused silently, watching as the dark haired man cleaned up after himself.

Once the workbench had been cleaned to his satisfaction Daryl tuned and smiled at Leia. "I'm off to look for some ingredients for an upcoming experiment. If I see Jack I'll see if he's free to drop by and meet you," he told the girl before heading up the stairs and out of the lab.

Leia listened for the sound of the door closing upstairs telling her that the scientist had left. She allowed herself to sink slowly back into the depths of the saltwater tank. She gave a soft sigh as she settled herself once again on the hard bottom of her temporary home. She looked around at the stark white confines of the tank and shook her head. _"I do hope that Daryl's friend can help make this more comfortable for me."_

Several uneventful hours later a very bored Leia heard the door to the lab open. She listened intently for the sounds of someone besides Daryl walking into the building. To her delight she heard another voice talking with the scientist.

The green haired girl peered over the edge of her watery home as the sounds of feet descending the stairs into the basement filled her ears. She lowered herself back into the safety of the water as Daryl and his guest reached the bottom of the staircase.

"So you say you have a real mermaid in that tank" Jack questioned curiously. "I thought they only existed in legends and stories."

"I can assure you she is most defiantly real," the scientist replied. "She was washed ashore during the spring hurricane.

The brown haired framer nodded skeptically. "Well, where is she?"

"Leia, are you ready to meet Jack?" the scientist called out curiously.

"Yes, I am," Leia replied shyly, slowly rising above the edge of her tub and looking at the two men standing several feet away from her. She gave the handsome brown haired young man standing next to Daryl a smile.

"You must be Jack. Daryl has told me so much about you," Leia said as best she could. To tell the truth, she was quite nervous and hoped that she didn't make a bad first impression on the farmer. "My name is Leia; it's so nice to meet you!" she added rising above the side of the tank and sitting on the edge.

Jack looked at the pretty green haired girl in awe. "You are real," he stammered as he approached her. "I didn't think mermaids were real."

Leia gave him a small smile. "We most defiantly are real."

To her delight the brown haired boy returned her smile. "Yep I guess you are. In any case, my name is Jack and it's a pleasure to meet you!"

"I'll just leave you two to get better acquainted," the elder scientist said before heading towards the stairs. "When you're ready to go, just let yourself out, no need to tell me that you've left," he added before disappearing up the stairs.

Leia returned her gaze back to the farmer, who for the moment seemed to be a tad bit shy. The mermaid decided that it was up to her if any conversation was going to take place.

"So Jack, Daryl tells me that it might be possible for you to help me make my temporary home a little more comfortable. I would really appreciate any help you could provide me."

Jack thought about her request for a few minutes before replying. "Well, I can try. Although I'm not entirely sure what I can do to help you," the brown haired young man answered. "But first why don't we get to know each other a little."

"Sure, that sounds like a good idea," Leia chirped in reply. "Shall I start or would you like to begin?"

Jack smiled back at the pretty blue eyed mermaid. "I'll start."

Leia returned the farmer's smile. "Alright, I'm all ears! Well, so to speak that is."

For the next hour and a half Jack and Leia exchanged information and stories about one another's lives. Both listened intently as the other spoke of their experiences, adventures, and their family.

Leia also took this time to explain to Jack what she hoped that he could do for her. First and foremost on the mermaid's wish list was a bed of some sort. Jack had asked in wonderment just what a mermaid's bed looked like. The question caused Leia to giggle a little before she went into just how her bed back home had been constructed.

"Well, I don't know if I can find coral to construct a bed for you." Jack began. "But I'm sure that between Daryl and me we can figure out something."

"That's fine," Leia replied. "Anything you can do will be fine, I'm sure."

Jack nodded back and then looked at some sort of device on his arm. "Wow, it getting late. I need to get back to my farm and feed my animals," he said with a smile. "It was nice talking to you Leia."

"It was nice to meet you too Jack," the mermaid replied. "Will you come back tomorrow?" She asked in a hopeful tone.

Jack nodded in reply. "Of course, I have to make that bed for you after all."

Leia smiled and waved as her newest friend ascended the staircase and exited the lab. Once she heard the door slam closed she swam down to the bottom of her watery home and curled up on the hard cement floor. This time however, a smile appeared on her face. _"Soon…," _She thought happily. _"Soon I'll have a bed!"_

* * *

For the next few weeks Jack visited Daryl's lab almost every day. It seemed to the scientist that a close friendship between the farmer and his fishy guest was quickly blossoming in the process.

As he'd promised Jack, along with Daryl's help had helped the mermaid to construct a bed, allowing her to sleep in relative comfort. And even though it wasn't the bed she had back home, she was thankful none the less.

Much to the young girl's surprise, Jack had begun to give her all manner of gifts. Finding out in the process what appealed to the mermaid and what she disliked as well. He even managed to bring her the occasional large fish that he'd caught while fishing at the beach.

This was most unusual in the mermaid world. There, if a merman wished to win the affection of a particular mermaid he simply gave her some red coral. This custom of gift giving seemed quite excessive and sometimes caused the green haired girl to be quite embarrassed.

On the up side, he had worked extensively with the eccentric scientist to help her transform the stark empty tank into a mini little ocean home. It had taken some effort but Jack had managed to haul sand and stones from the beach to give the tank a more ocean-like feeling. Additionally he was able to remove several sections of the reef, transferring them to the tank and allowing Leia to use them to decorate the interior of the tank.

Even though it wasn't the open ocean, at least for the time being it was feeling a lot more like home.

* * *

Leia smiled as she heard Jack's voice calling out a greeting to Daryl as he entered the lab. Her smile grew wider as the sounds of the farmer descending the stairs filled her ears.

"Hi Leia, how are you feeling on this fine day?" Jack questioned as he walked over to Leia's saltwater tank.

"I'm fine, thank you for asking," she replied cheerfully. "How about you Jack? How are you doing today?"

"I'm fine. Hey you know what? I have something for you." Jack said, a grin brimming on his face. "I was at the mine yesterday when I came across this. He reached into his backpack and withdrew a sparkling jeweled necklace. "I though it would look pretty on you," he added and handed it to the mermaid.

"It's so sparkly, I really like it!" she squealed happily. "But you don't have to keep on giving me gifts all the time."

Jack smiled. "But I like to give you gifts," he argued back. "Don't worry, I don't mind doing it."

Leia shook her head. "I don't think you understand. I do appreciate the thoughtfulness, but in my world such extravagance is frowned upon."

Jack nodded. "I think I understand," he smiled at the mermaid. "What if I only give you one gift a week? Would that be a more acceptable approach?"

"Yes, that would be fine," Leia replied, looking at the jeweled necklace in her hands. "Can you help me to put it on?"

The farmer gave her a tooth filled grin. "Yeah, sure that's no problem at all." He leaned forward and placed the necklace around the girl's throat, and after a bit of work he finally got the clasp closed and stepped back. "It's very pretty on you."

The farmer's compliment caused the mermaid's cheeks to blush a deep crimson red. "Th… thank you Jack. I'm glad that you think that."

Jack smiled and stepped back from her tank. "Sorry I have to leave a little earlier today, but one of my cows isn't feeling well and I have to attend to her."

Leia gave him a reassuring nod. "Even though I have no idea what a cow is, it seems to be something important to you."

"Yeah, Daisy used to belong to my grandfather, so she's special to me," Jack replied. "You know what, maybe one of these days I can take you over to my farm and give you a tour."

"That would be nice!" Leia exclaimed happily. "But I'm afraid that I might be seen by someone."

This time it was Jack who gave a reassuring nod. "I'm sure we could work something out."

"Do you really think so?" She asked curiously. "I really do want to experience as much of the human world as I can."

"That's understandable," Jack replied. "I bet it's all so strange here for you."

The green haired girl smiled. "It is, but between you and Daryl helping me to understand things, the human world is less daunting that it was when I first was washed ashore."

"I'm glad we've been so helpful," the farmer replied happily. "Maybe one day you'll be able to return the favor and show me a little of the mermaid world."

"Maybe, although I don't know how it would be possible. You see, my world lies well below the oceans surface and you humans are unable to breathe underwater."

Jack sighed. "Yeah, I can see that being a problem."

The sound of someone approaching down the stairs caught the attention of the two. Looking over they saw Daryl round the corner and he walked towards them.

"So how are things today?" he asked curiously walking over and standing next to Jack.

"Things are just fine," Leia answered happily. "But Jack was just about to leave."

The scientist eyed the farmer curiously. "Is there something wrong?"

Jack shook his head. "No, everything here is just fine. It's back on my farm where the problem is."

"You have a problem on your farm?" the scientist asked intently. "Is it anything that I can provide assistance with?"

"No, it's nothing like that. One of my cows is sick. I gave her medicine this morning but I want to make sure she's responding to it."

"I hope Daisy gets better soon!" Leia chirped merrily.

"As do I Leia," Jack replied. "Anyway, I really need to get going. I'll see you tomorrow Leia!" he added. "Thank you for your offer Daryl, but I'm sure I can handle this."

"As you wish Jack," the scientist said simply. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have an experiment to attend to."

Jack returned his gaze back to Leia. "I'll be sure to stop by tomorrow."

"OK Jack. I'm already looking forward to it," she replied, giving him a wide smile. She watched and gave a wave as the brown haired young man disappeared up the stairs and out of the lab.

* * *

Summer was drawing to a close and the air in the basement had begun to take on a chilly feeling causing Leia to shiver slightly each time she immerged from the warm waters of her concrete sanctuary. She swam gently down to the pink and red coral that made up the frame of her bed. She finned herself over and after adjusting the position of some soft kelp she lied down and stretched out her long orange and purple tailfin. She relaxed and closed her eyes to sleep, wondering if her dreams would be visited by a certain brown haired farmer named Jack.

_Chapter 2 is complete! Thanks for reading all the way to the end. I hope that you will take a moment and let me know your thoughts and comments in a review, Ja ne! _


	3. Fall Festivals

_**A/N:**__ This story focuses on Leia and her life in Daryl's lab. _

_Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed the last chapter! I know it's been a while since this story was updated. But I was stuck and only recently was able to figure out how to finally move the plot forward. _

_**Disclaimer:**__ I don't own Harvest Moon, so don't sue me. _

_**The Distant Sound of Waves**_

_**Chapter 3 Fall Festivals**_

Autumn's colors filled the trees in and around the valley, signifying the change of seasons and the arrival of cooler weather.

Leia swam up from the bottom of her saltwater tub and looked around the empty lab. The stillness of the cool air in the basement made the young mermaid shiver slightly. She wondered where everyone was. Pushing herself away from the edge she swam slowly back down to the bottom of the tank and laid herself down on the soft kelp. _"I wonder if I'll see Jack today,"_ she mused silently.

It seemed like a long time to the young mermaid before she heard the sounds of someone descending the stairs into the basement. She swam quickly to the surface to see who was there, hoping that it would be a certain brown haired farmer. She surfaced and looked around, not seeing anyone at first. _"Did I imagine that?"_ she wondered for a moment.

She was just about to reenter the water when a sound off to her left caught her attention. "Who's there?" the mermaid asked curiously.

Daryl stood up from behind a small cabinet. "It's me, Leia," he answered plainly. "I just need to get something from this cabinet."

"Have you seen Jack today?" the green haired girl asked curiously. "I was hoping that he would come by for a visit."

The scientist shrugged his shoulders. "I haven't seen him today. Perhaps he's just busy with work on the farm."

Leia nodded and sighed a little. "Yeah, I suppose that's a possibility."

Daryl looked over at his fishy guest. "Oh I almost forgot to tell you! Don't expect me to be here for dinner tonight."

The young mermaid returned the gaze. "Why? Do you have other plans?"

The scientist nodded. "Yes. Today is the annual Harvest Festival."

Leia gave the man a quizzical look. "What's a Harvest festival?"

"It's a gathering of all the towns' residents to thank the Harvest Goddess for the bountiful harvest that she blessed upon the valley. Everyone gathers at the town square and donates to a giant stew," he explained.

"That sounds like a wonderful time," Leia replied. "I wonder if Jack will be going as well."

"I'm sure he will. After all, farmers have the most to be thankful for."

The mermaid nodded slowly. "I wish that it could be possible for me to attend such an event, but I can't risk being seen, nor can I be out of the water for too long."

"That's quite true," the man in white replied. "If I see Jack I'll be sure to tell him that you said hello."

"Thank you Daryl. That would be nice of you," Leia said softly.

The scientist gave her a nod and retuned his attention to the cabinet in front of him. Leia listened as he rummaged around out of sight.

"Aha, here it is!" he exclaimed, standing up and giving Leia a victory sign. "I'm sure Flora will like this," he added happily.

"What is it?" the mermaid questioned curiously. "How can you be so certain that Flora will like it?"

"As you know she's an archeologist. This is a fossil of some manner of an ancient creature that I found. I'm sure she will be thrilled to have it," he explained.

"I see."

Daryl put the artifact into the pocket of his lab coat and turned towards the stairs. "I'll see you later Leia," he said giving the tub bound girl a quick wave and walking up the stairs and out of the lab.

Leia listened to the sound of silence that filled the lab. A sad sigh escaped her lips as she pushed off from the edge of her tub and allowed herself to sink slowly into the warm water. She finned herself over to her bed and settled down atop the soft kelp. _"Did Jack go to this festival?"_ she pondered silently. _"If he did, who accompanied him?"_ The young mermaid tried to make herself as comfortable as she could, closing her eyes and trying to sleep. But her thoughts kept returning to the brown haired human know to her as Jack.

* * *

The following morning broke the same as it had everyday since she'd entered the human world. Leia stretched out her orange and purple tail, flipping it gently from side to side before heading to the surface. Once there she looked around, and found Daryl in his usual place, hunched over at his workbench.

"Good morning, Daryl."

The scientist looked up from his experiment and gave her a small nod to acknowledge her greeting.

The green haired girl sighed softly and climbed slowly out of the tub, making her way over to the small kitchen area to prepare their breakfast. After some quick preparation she placed some rice balls and sliced pickled turnips onto a platter and placed it onto the table. She added two plates and looked over at the scientist, who was still toiling away on the experiment.

"Daryl, I've prepared some breakfast for us."

Once again the eccentric man glanced up from his workbench. "Oh, I'm sorry Leia; I forgot to tell you, I'm going over to the mine to have breakfast with Flora."

"I see," the mermaid replied softly. "How did Flora like the fossil you found for her?"

Daryl looked up again, however this time a smile filled his face. "She liked it a lot!" he exclaimed happily. "It turns out that it's some sort of an ancient sea creature. She told me the name but it escapes me at the moment."

Leia gave him a small smile. "Well, I'm happy that she liked her gift."

The scientist nodded and returned his attention to the beakers and test tubes on the table in front of him. Leia picked up a rice ball and placed it into her mouth. She chewed slowly savoring the taste of the dried seaweed that held the rice ball together. It reminded her of something her mother used to make for her when she was younger. Sadly she placed the remaining food back into the stark white colored refrigerator. _"Why is everything here white?"_ she thought as she looked around the lab.

After making sure everything was tidied up and put away, the mermaid made her way back to her temporary home and climbed inside. She was just about to disappear beneath the waters surface when Daryl got up and began to walk across the lab. The fishy girl watched with curiosity as her host stopped in front of a mirror and ran a comb through his hair. She hadn't noticed him doing that before.

"Are you leaving to go to see Flora?" she asked curiously.

Daryl turned and gave her a smile. "Indeed I am," he grinned in reply. "As I said before, she promised me a nice warm breakfast as a thank you for giving her the fossil."

The green haired girl nodded. She swam to the far edge just in time to see Daryl disappear up the stairs. "Goodbye Daryl, have a nice time," she mumbled before submerging herself in the warm salt water.

* * *

The young mermaid was trying to pass the time when the sounds of someone descending the stairs into the lab filled her ears. Wondering if it was her host, she finned to the surface and looked around. To her delight she saw a brown haired young man standing in front of her tank.

"Hi Jack!" she chirped happily. "It's nice to see you."

The farmer returned the mermaid's smile. "It's nice to see you too Leia."

"I missed you yesterday," she said. "Where were you?"

Jack seemed surprised by the mermaid's question. "Um… I was, ah, one of my animals was sick," he answered nervously.

Leia eyed him wryly. "Are you sure it didn't have anything to do with the Harvest Festival that was held yesterday?"

"Was that yesterday?" he answered, trying his best to sound convincing. "Like I said, I was with a sick animal."

Leia smiled. "I see. Well I was just wondering since I know that Daryl attended the festival."

Jack gave the green haired girl a surprised look. "Daryl went to the Harvest Festival?"

"Yes he did. He went with Flora, the girl who works at the mines."

The farmer shook his head. "Yeah, I know who Flora is. I just didn't expect that she'd go with someone like Daryl."

Leia narrowed her eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Jack stepped back and looked at the girl. "You know, he's kind of bizarre and all. With his experiments and who knows what else goes on in here."

"He's nothing like that!" Leia retorted angrily.

"Hey, I didn't mean to insult him. Geez, you sure are sensitive about him for some reason," Jack said defensively

"It's because he's my friend," Leia answered.

Jack sighed. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to insult him," he said in an apologetic voice.

The mermaid gave the farmer a smile. "I accept your apology. Just please try to refrain from being too critical of Daryl's work. Even though I don't understand what he does, I don't think it is done with any malicious intent."

"I'll keep that in mind," Jack replied. "Anyway, I just wanted to drop by and say hi. I need to get back to my farm and finish some things up."

"Can't you stay for dinner?" Leia asked in a hopeful voice. "I can make you some nice grilled fish."

The brown haired farmer shook his head. "Sorry, but I can't stay. I really need to get back."

"That's alright," Leia replied. "Maybe you could come by for dinner tomorrow? I really think you'd like the way my fish tastes! Daryl seems to really like it."

Jack gave the girl a smile. "We'll have to see how busy I am."

Leia nodded in reply. "I hope you can make it," she said as she nervously twirled several strands of her green hair around her finger.

"Like I said, we'll have to see how my day plays out," he answered as he headed toward the stairs. "See you later Leia."

"Bye Jack!"

Once again as she was left alone in the lab, a feeling of loneliness washed over the girl as she sank into the depths of her tank. She swam slowly over to a large pink clamshell and opened it. Inside she kept the gifts that Jack had given her since the time they first met. She reached into the shell and took out a jeweled necklace and ran it through her fingers.

"_Does he really have feelings for me?"_ she wondered to herself as she looked at the gift. _"I wish I knew the truth." _

* * *

Days passed and with each one Leia saw less and less of the brown haired farmer. She began to worry that after how she's accused him during his last visit, that he might be upset with her. She swam to the surface of her pool and let herself float on the surface. _"I should ask Daryl if he's seen him," _she said to herself. _"He could just be busy after all." _She told herself hopefully.

Leia swam slowly around in her tub, it was all she could do while waiting for Jack to visit her. She heard Daryl coming down the stairs and swam to the top of her tub to greet him.

"Hello Daryl. How are you today?"

"Good day Leia. I'm well, how are you today?" the scientist replied.

"I'm doing okay," The green haired mermaid answered. She gave the man in white a curious look. "Hey, Daryl..., have you seen Jack lately? He hasn't been here in days."

The scientist shook his head. "I've seen him around town and at the mine. Hasn't he visited you recently?"

Leia shook her head sadly. "No, he hasn't visited in a while."

"I see. Hm, perhaps he'll visit you soon," he replied trying to sound as reassuring as possible.

"I hope so."

Daryl gave his fishy guest a nod. "In any case, I have to prepare myself. Tomorrow will be a special day for me."

Leia gave the man in white a curious look. "Oh? Why is that?"

"Tomorrow is the Sheep Festival and I will be attending with Flora," he explained. "Even though I have little interest in sheep, Flora finds them cute."

"There is another festival?" Leia asked. "I know I may have asked this before, but what is a sheep?"

"A sheep is a small animal that has a thick coat of dense wool," Daryl explained to the young mermaid. "Once it gets thick enough, it's cut off and used to make clothes."

"Oh, I see. That's interesting. Do you think Jack will attend this festival?"

"I would think so," Daryl answered. "His farm might even have a sheep entered in the contest."

"I see."

Daryl gave her a small smile. "He may still invite you later today."

Leia gave a soft sigh. "I would love to go with him! But... you know I don't want anyone else to see me."

Daryl nodded. "That's true. Also you need to remain in the water. Hm, that poses a problem."

"Yeah, it is a problem…"

Leia was silent for a few moments before looking over at the scientist. "Daryl... is there anyway that you can make me human?"

The scientist was taken aback by the girl's question. After a moment of consideration he shook his head. "No there isn't. I wouldn't do anything of the sort either."

Leia sighed again. "I see... but if I could become human, it would make things much easier for me."

Daryl gave her a sympathetic look. "While that may be true, such things are beyond my capacity. I wouldn't even know where to begin."

The mermaid sighed. "I see…"

"I'm sorry to disappoint you Leia, but I cannot defy the ways of nature."

Leia gave her host a smile. "It's okay Daryl, I appreciate your honesty."

Daryl returned the fishy girl's smile. "Thank you for understanding. Now, if you'll excuse me I have to complete an experiment that I started last week."

Leia nodded. "Okay, I won't bother you, Daryl."

"Thank you," he replied and walked over to his workbench and took out several beakers and test tubes that were filled with an assortment of multicolored liquids.

The day ended without a visit from Jack. He didn't visit the day of the festival either. But later that day when Daryl returned to the lab Leia wondered if he was there.

As the scientist walked into the lab, the mermaid swam over to the edge of her tank. "Hey, Daryl... was Jack at the festival today?"

Daryl paused for a moment before answering. "I do remember seeing him there. I think his sheep came in second place as well."

"Oh. Well, second place isn't bad. That would explain why he didn't come."

Daryl gave the green haired girl a sympathetic look. "I take it that he never came by to ask you about the festival?"

"No, he didn't."

Daryl nodded. "I see. That would explain that..."

Leia gave the man a curious look. "Explains what?"

"Um, nothing..., it was nothing at all! I was mistaken, that's all!" he stammered.

Leia looked directly at the scientist. "Tell me, Daryl! I want to know!"

Daryl gave an audible sigh. "Are you sure that you want to hear this?"

Leia nodded slowly. "Yes. Please tell me."

Daryl sighed once again. "Jack was indeed at the festival and as I said, his sheep won second place. He lost out to someone named Barley from Mineral Town. However, he wasn't there alone."

Leia gave him a quizzical look. "He wasn't?"

Daryl shook his head. "No, he was there with Muffy."

"Muffy? Who is Muffy?"

"She works at the local drinking establishment," Daryl replied. "It's a place called the Blue Bar. She's a hostess of some sort. I'm not sure exactly what since I've never been inside."

A look of disbelief filled the young mermaids face. "Jack was with... another girl? No... It can't be..."

"It might not be what it appears to be," Daryl added. "Although, I did see them arm in arm."

Leia shook her head. She didn't want to believe what Daryl had just told her was right.

Daryl, seeing the sad expression on the mermaid's face quickly tried to reassure her. "I'm sorry Leia, but before you jump to conclusions, I would ask him for an explanation."

Leia sighed. "I will... if he ever comes..."

Daryl smiled. "How about if the next time I see him I tell him to make sure and stop by."

The green haired girl retuned the smile. "That would be nice. Thank you, Daryl."

Daryl nodded in reply. "No problem! Now, if you'll excuse me I have to leave for a little while."

Leia gave him a smile. "Okay. See you later, Daryl."

Daryl waved good-by and headed upstairs and out of the lab.

* * *

Two days passed before Jack finally paid Leia a visit. He walked into the lab and over to her tank. "Hi Leia, Daryl said you wanted to see me about something," he said in a friendly voice.

Leia nodded. "Hello, Jack. Yes... um... it's about the other day... the day of the Sheep Festival..."

"What about it?" the farmer asked curiously. "Did Daryl tell you? Cotton won second place!"

Leia gave the farmer a wry look. "Cotton is the name of your sheep? Yeah, he told me about that. But he also told me... about something else. He says you were with a girl named Muffy."

A look of embarrassment filled the farmer's face. "Did he? Um, well yes I was at the festival with her."

Sadness filled the young mermaid's expression. "I... I see..."

Jack, seeing the sad look in the girl's face immediately tried to defend his actions. "Hey, it wasn't like that! Muffy is just a friend of mine, that's all! She wanted to see the sheep so I asked her to go with me."

Leia looked up, a little hopefully. "Is that really true, Jack? You're not lying to me are you?"

Jack grinned. "Hey sweetie, would I lie to you? Muffy is a friend, that's all. Heck, I didn't even hold her hand or anything!"

Leia gave the brown haired boy an unsure look. "Daryl told me he saw you 'arm in arm' with her."

The confident look that was on Jack's face a moment earlier was replaced by another look of embarrassment. "Um... ah, well ah, that was Muffy's idea. She must have just grabbed my arm when Daryl saw me. I mean, how well could he have been watching me if he had his eyes on Flora all the time!"

Still a little unsure, she looked directly at the farmer. "You're sure that nothing is going on between you two?"

A defensive look filled Jack's face. "Hey what are you saying? Don't believe me? Heck, even if I wanted to take you, you can't leave your tub! That makes things kind of hard don't you think!"

Leia sighed and sank a little deeper into her tank. "I'm sorry. But you haven't been around much lately. I couldn't help wondering..."

Jack shook his head. "Yeah, well I've been busy with my farm and things. Hey, how about I come back tomorrow and bring you a nice fresh fish?"

"Really, you would do that for me? I would like that very much!"

Jack smiled. "Alright then that's what I'll do!" He smiled at her confidently. "I'll be sure to drop by tomorrow! But for now, I need to get going. I have to do something important."

Leia returned the smile. "It's your farm, right? Well, good luck with that!"

"Yeah, my farm, that's it!" He replied, sounding a little nervous. "I'll see you around then!" He added, giving her a wave and heading back up the stairs and out of the lab.

Leia waved back before swimming down to the bottom of her saltwater home. As she settled onto her bed, a thought crossed her mind. _"Hm, I wonder what he was so nervous about."_

* * *

The following morning Leia awoke and happily swam to the surface of her tub. She looked around but found the lab empty. Knowing that Jack probably had some work to do on his farm she returned to the depths of the tub to wait for his arrival. But as the day wore on, she became less confident that he was going to visit her. As night fell and darkness filled the valley Leia swam over to her bed and buried her head in her pillow. After a few moments she lifted her head. _"Maybe something came up and he couldn't make it today,"_ she thought hopefully. _"He'll probably come tomorrow."_

The next day ended just as the prior one had, leaving the young mermaid wondering if she'd made a horrible mistake by remaining in the human world. She swam slowly to the surface and looked around the empty lab, She paused a moment and looked out the window. Outside flakes of soft white snow wafted down from a leaden sky.

Leia felt hot tears falling down her cheeks as she looked around at the vacant room. "Jack… where are you?" she muttered softly before turning and swimming down into her pool.

_Yay, I finished this chapter! I hope everyone liked how this came out and I promise that it won't take me seven months to post the next update! As always please take a moment to leave me a review! Until next time, Ja ne! _


	4. Winters Chill

_**A/N:**__ This story focuses on Leia and her life in Daryl's lab. _

_Many thanks to __**Eve Pomme**__, __**Peach the Hedgehog**__, and __**roxas-kh**__ for your reviews! I'm glad you're enjoying the story. _

_**Disclaimer:**__ I don't own Harvest Moon, so don't sue me. _

_**The Distant Sound of Waves**_

_**Chapter 4 Winters Chill**_

Outside the window Leia could see that snow was falling. She wrapped her arms around herself and shivered slightly. A chill had filled the air in the valley signifying the arrival of the winter season. Inside Daryl's lab the air had become chilly as well. Leia turned and dove back beneath the warm waters surface. She swam slowly around her tub, wondering where everyone was. She had just settled down on the edge of her bed when the sounds of someone coming down the stairs filled her ears. Her spirits lifted and she swam to the surface to see who was visiting her.

As she broke the surface, she looked around curiously, wondering if it was Jack that had entered the lab. Leia watched as a white lab coat clad man entered the small room. He glanced over at the green haired mermaid and gave her a small smile. "Good day Leia. How are you today?"

Leia sighed slightly, a little disappointed that it wasn't Jack who was visiting her. "Oh hello Daryl. I'm doing okay," she replied softly.

Daryl gave the fishy girl a curious look. "I see. But you seem a bit down today. Is there something troubling you?" he asked curiously.

The young mermaid shook her head slowly and twirled a couple of stands of her emerald green hair with her fingers. "Well... I want you to know that I am grateful for the hospitality you have given me, and for keeping my secret. It's just that... well lately I've been feeling a little more homesick than usual."

Daryl nodded. "I see. Is there something that I can do to help to ease your pain?"

Leia smiled weakly and adjusted one of the purple seashell accents in her hair. "You've already done so much for me Daryl. You and Jack have been able to comfort me and I really appreciate that."

The scientist returned the girl's smile and walked over to her tank, placing his hands on the edge. "That's true, but it's apparent that we haven't done enough to ease your pain completely. I realize that it must be difficult to be confined to the tub day after day. Especially since you were used to having the vastness of the open ocean to swim in."

Leia nodded. "Yes it is," she replied sadly. "And even though I healed a while ago, I decided to stay here in the human world because I was curious about humans and... well um..."

Daryl gave the girl a grin. "Is it partially because you've developed a friendship with Jack?"

The young mermaid sighed. "Yes... and lately… I've wondered how much he really cares for me."

"Hm, I'm sure that he considers you to be a friend," the scientist replied. "What more do you expect?"

"I don't know what I really expect," she said with a sigh. "I know that he considers me to be a friend, but I wonder if his feelings run deeper than that."

Daryl shrugged his shoulders. "I'm not sure about that. I do know that he seems to be happy in your presence."

Leia's mood seemed to brighten a little at that. "Yeah, I've noticed that too."

"Then I wouldn't worry about it too much. I'm sure that he has some level of feelings for you."

Leia smiled warmly. "Yeah, you're probably right about that."

Daryl returned the mermaid's smile and nodded. "If you'll excuse me then, I have an experiment that I need to attend to." He gave her another quick smile and then he turned towards his workbench.

Leia gave the scientist a curious look. "You have another experiment to do? What are you testing this time?"

Daryl turned back around and faced the girl once again. "It had to do with the ability of a pickle to conduct electricity," he explained. "I can show you if you'd like?"

A look of interest filled the mermaid's face. "Sure! I'd like to see that."

Daryl's mood brightened considerably. "Of course, that's no problem," he replied. Leia watched intently as he carried a table over and set it in front of her tank. After several more trips to his workbench to bring over a variety of items he held up a large dark green pickle and some thin red and blue wires. "You see this?" he asked curiously. "It's a pickle and I think it can be made to conduct electricity."

Leia scrunched her face into a confused look. "It can? Is that really possible?"

Daryl nodded. "It contains a fairly acidic solution so it should be able to," he explained. "Let's see."

He turned his attention to the pickle, hooking one red wire in one end of it and a blue wire in the other end. He then hooked the end of the red wire to some type of an instrument and the blue wire to a small battery. An excited look filled the scientist's face as he pointed to the instrument. "Look, see how the needle moves! It really works."

Leia watched in amazement as the needle jumped back and forth across the face of the instrument. She had never seen anything like that before! Even during her time in school. "Wow, that's incredible, Daryl!"

Daryl smiled at the girl's inquisitive look. "Indeed it is!" he exclaimed. "I had suspected this for some time now. And it seems that I was correct."

Leia grinned back. "Yep, you're amazing! I've never seen anything like that done before."

Leia's praise caused a blush to fill Daryl's cheeks. "I am a man of science and what I do isn't so much amazing as it is scientific."

Leia continued to smile as she watched the needle move erratically. "If you say so Daryl. I still find it amazing."

Daryl nodded and glanced at the clock on the wall. "Oh! I have to leave; I'm going to be late!"

"What will you be late for?" Leia asked curiously.

"I'm supposed to be meeting Flora at the Inn," he answered as he hurriedly cleaned up the experiment, dumping everything onto his workbench instead of carefully putting everything back away in its proper location. "She invited me there for dinner and if I don't hurry I'm going to be late."

Leia sighed and gave him a small smile. "Oh, I see. You're meeting Flora again, huh?"

Daryl smiled. "Yes I am. She is such an interesting girl!" he replied. "I should bring her by for a visit, I'm sure she's never seen a mermaid before!"

"Um... Daryl..."

The scientist looked over at his fishy guest. "Yes."

Leia gave him a stern look. "Don't you remember? I don't want anyone to know I'm here," she explained. "I made an exception with Jack, but..."

"But I'm sure that she would find you an interesting sight!" he countered.

"Well..."

"I'm sure she would remain silent about your presence here," Daryl went on, tying to sound convincing. "I would just like to show you to her."

Leia shook her head. "I'm sure that Flora is a good person... and that she can be trusted to keep my presence here a secret, but I'd rather not meet anyone new right now."

Daryl gave her a curious look. "Why not? I just said that Flora is a nice person and I thought it might be nice for you to meet more people."

Leia sighed sadly. "It's not that I don't want to meet her and I'm sure she is a nice person and all. But well..., I don't want to be presented and shown off like one of your experiments."

Daryl narrowed his eyes and adjusted his glasses. "Well, you are staying here in my lab aren't you?" he countered sounding a bit miffed.

"Well yes, but..."

"Well, to be quite honest, I think you are acting a little childish about all this. After all, it's just one more person. It's not like I'm advertising your presence all over the valley and then charging an admission fee for them to come down here to see you," he huffed back.

Leia looked surprised at his accusation. "You think I'm being childish about this? I told you before I didn't want anyone to know I was here! I made an expectation with Jack because it was necessary, but..."

"But what? I thought you said that you were lonely?" Daryl shot back. "I just wanted to introduce you to more people to help keep you company, that's all. Then when I want to do just that, you say that you don't want to meet anyone. You are such a confusing individual."

"Well... that wasn't what I had in mind. I'm not one of your experiments, and I don't want to be shown off like that," she retorted angrily, swishing her tail violently, causing water to spill from the sides of her tub. "I do appreciate the idea Daryl, but let me decide when I want to meet new people."

"I see," the scientist replied, sounding a bit more upset. "Well, I'm going to meet with Flora. For now I'll respect your choice not to meet her or anyone else. However, I hope that you will reconsider and allow me to bring her here to meet you."

Leia gave him a look as if to say that she might consider it. She then turned and disappeared beneath the waters surface.

Daryl watched as Leia's orange and purple tail flipped into the air as she slipped back under the water. He sighed to himself. _"Why was she being so difficult about this? Flora is a nice person and I'm sure she'd be thrilled to say that she met a real mermaid." _He paused for a moment more before heading towards the stairs. He glanced at the clock and cursed silently, hoping that Flora would understand why he would be a little late for their date.

----------------------------------------------

Several days later as the afternoon sun shown through the lab's windows Leia was finishing up preparing some fish for dinner when she heard the door to the lab open and close. She waited and listened to see if it was perhaps Jack who had come to pay her a visit.

However, to her disappointment she didn't hear any talking and she figured that it was just Daryl returning form wherever he had to go to when he'd left earlier. She returned her focus to filleting the large fish in front of her. A short time later the scientist descended the stairs and walked over to her.

"Do you know how to make a cake?" he asked curiously.

Leia thought about the question for a moment. "Um…, not really, unless it's a seaweed kelp cake you're talking about," she replied nervously. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, the Winter Thanksgiving Festival is in a few days and it's traditional for a girl to give chocolate cake or chocolate cookies to the special boys in her life," Daryl explained with a knowing smile. "I was thinking that you could prepare a cake or some cookies for Jack."

Leia smiled as she thought about giving Jack a present. But she didn't know a thing about baking! How would she make a cake or cookies for him? _"What can I do about this…?"_

Daryl noticed the concerned look and offered a suggestion. "Perhaps, if you allow me to introduce you to Flora, she could help you to bake a cake."

Leia sighed. There he was, trying to get her to meet Flora again! But this time it seemed to appeal to the young mermaid and after a bit of consideration she smiled. "That would be nice if she could do that."

"Great! I'll see if she can stop by later today," Daryl chirped happily.

Leia nodded and returned her attention to the fillets. "Dinner will be ready in about an hour if you'd like to go and visit her."

"That's a good idea. Hm, do you think you could prepare an extra portion? I could invite her for dinner then."

Leia nodded slowly. "I suppose I could. I hope she likes grilled fish."

"Hm, I don't know, I'll have to ask her," Daryl replied as he headed towards the stairs. "I'll be back shortly"

The young mermaid watched him ascend the stairs and listened as the door slammed closed behind him. As she reached out and began to fillet the extra fish a thought came to mind. _"Have I made a mistake? Will letting another human meet me cause me more troubles?"_

35 minutes later Leia heard the door to the lab open as well as Daryl's voice telling someone, whom she assumed was Flora, to be careful where she stepped. A feeling of nervousness crept over the mermaid and she hurried back to her tub and climbed in. She ducked down and peered over the edge, waiting for them to walk down into the basement.

She didn't have to wait long before the sounds of them descending the staircase filled her ears. "Leia, are you here?" Daryl called out curiously. "Flora is here to meet you."

The mermaid shook her a head a little at that question. Of course she was here, she never left the lab! But that wasn't the point. Leia took a deep breath and pushed herself up and onto the side of the tub. She looked over and smiled at the blonde haired girl standing next to Daryl. "Hello. You must be Flora! My name is Leia; it's nice to meet you."

An audible gasp could be heard form the blonde. "She really is a mermaid!"

"Of course she is," Daryl replied plainly, as though it should be common sense. "And she needs your help with something."

Flora walked over and stood in front of Leia. "I have to say that at first I thought that Daryl was kidding me when he first told me about you. But now that I can see you in person… wow!"

Leia blushed and gave a smile in return. "Did Daryl tell you why I need your help?' she asked curiously.

Flora nodded. "Yep, he told me that you need some help to bake a cake, right? For Jack?"

"Yes, that's right. I want to bake him a cake for the upcoming Winter Thanksgiving Festival."

The blonde archeologist smiled at the green haired girl. "I see. That's a nice idea. I'm sure Jack will like that a lot."

Leia began to feel a little more comfortable with Flora and hopped out of her tub. She made her way over to the stove and took a platter of grilled fish out of the oven where it was being kept warm. "I hope you like fish," she said, placing the platted in the middle of the table.

Flora smiled. "Well, I do like sushi, so I'm sure I'll enjoy this."

"Leia makes wonderful grilled fish," Daryl added as he reached out and took a portion of the fish and placed it onto his plate.

"It certainly smells good," Flora said as she took a portion for herself. "I'm sure it will taste good."

Leia smiled and took the remaining portion for herself. "I hope you enjoy it!"

After dinner Daryl looked at the two girls seated next to and across from him. "I have some experiments that need my attention. I was thinking that now might be a good time to work on baking that cake."

Both girls nodded in agreement. "It won't take long to do, maybe an hour or so," Flora said as she stood up to take her plate over to the sink. "I brought all the ingredients with me since Daryl didn't know if you would have everything we might need."

Daryl stood and waked over to the sink. "Since you won't need me, I'm going to head upstairs for a little while."

"That's fine Daryl; we can handle things just fine," Flora said with a wide grin. "It will also give Leia and I some time to get to know each other."

With that the scientist walked up the stairs, leaving the blonde haired archeologist and green haired mermaid alone.

Flora walked over to a medium sized light blue bag and picked it up. She waked back over to the table and placed the bag down on top of it. She unzipped the bag and began to remove the ingredients for the cake from the inside.

Leia watched intently as Flora began to mix the various ingredients in a large bowl. She added eggs and a white liquid called milk to the mixture and stirred it vigorously.

"You see, Leia," she explained. "We have to mix this all into a nice creamy batter. You need to make sure all the lumps are out or it will ruin the cake."

"I see," the mermaid replied with interest. "This is much different from the type of cake my mom taught me to make."

"Oh, you do know how to make cake?" Flora questioned curiously.

Leia nodded. "Yes, but not like the cakes you have here in your world. In fact, you would probably not like the sort of cake that we mermaids eat."

"What's different about them?"

"Well, for one thing we use seaweed and kelp as the main ingredients," Leia answered with a small smile.

Flora cringed a little at the thought of a cake made out of seaweed and kelp. "Oh, I see what you mean."

The mermaid gave the blonde a smile. "It actually tastes much better than it might sound."

Flora smiled back at the fishy girl. "Well, I think Jack might appreciate the thought if you were to give him a cake like that, but I know he'll like this cake."

Leia nodded and watched as the blonde archeologist finished mixing the batter and poured the mixture into a pan.

"Now we just have to bake this for 45 minutes," Flora explained as she closed the oven door. "In the meantime we can chat and maybe get to know each other a little better."

"I think that's a good idea," Leia replied. "I'm interested in humans and your world."

And that's just want the two girls did until the egg timer began to ring, signifying that the cake was done. Flora walked over and opened the door and reached inside. She removed a golden colored cake and gave it an approving sniff. "Mmm, this came out perfectly!"

"It certainly smells nice," Leia agreed. "Do you decorate your cakes here as well?"

Flora nodded and reached into the bag. She pulled out a can of double chocolate fudge frosting. "This will be the perfect way to finish our cake."

The green haired girl grinned. "Yes it will be! I know that Jack really likes chocolate."

Flora returned the mermaid's grin and began to apply a generous amount of the rich confection over the cake's surface. In no time at all, the cake was complete. The blonde haired girl stepped back and admired her work. "It came out nice, even if I do say so myself."

"I think you did a wonderful job Flora. I'm sure Jack and Daryl will enjoy it."

"I'm sure they will too," Flora agreed. She then reached over and took a large knife and carefully sliced the cake in half. "This half is for Jack and this half is for Daryl."

Leia smiled in agreement. But her expression quickly changed from happy to sad. "How can I give this to Jack if I can't leave the lab?"

"I thought of that and here's what we'll do," Flora said with a smile. "I'll go to Jack's farm and tell him that you would like to see him. That way when he arrives, you can give him the cake."

The smile returned to the mermaid's face once again. "That would be wonderful! Thank you for all your help Flora."

The blonde smiled back at the fishy girl and after placing the two cake halves on plates and placing them into the refrigerator. "I have to go now; it was nice to meet you Leia. I'll be sure to let Jack know to stop by."

"Thank you Flora." Leia said as she waved. She watched as the blonde haired girl walked up the stairs and after saying a quick good-bye, she left the lab.

---------------------------------------------------------------

The two days passed quickly and Leia waited anxiously for the brown haired farmer to arrive. She listened with interest each time the door to the lab opened, waiting to hear the familiar sound of Jack's voice.

But as the day wore on, she began to wonder if perhaps Flora had forgotten to tell Jack to visit her. She swam nervously around her tub wondering if he would show up at all.

The sun had begun to set when the door to the lab opened and at last a familiar voice was heard. Leia's mood perked up immediately as she heard him begin to walk down the stairs. She swam up to the edge of her tub and with one final kick of her tailfin; she positioned herself on its edge.

"Hi Leia, Flora stopped by and said that you would like to see me about something?" The farmer said as he walked over to her.

The mermaid smiled happily. "Of course, I know that today is the Winter Thanksgiving festival," she said happily. "With Flora's help, I made a chocolate cake for you!" She added, pointing to the cake sitting on the table.

Jack looked over at the cake and gave the mermaid a small smile. "That was… um, nice of you Leia. Thank you."

The young mermaid climbed out of the tub and made her way over to the table. "Would you like a piece?" She asked hopefully.

Jack shook his head and rubbed his stomach. "Sorry, but I have a bit of a stomachache right now, he replied. _"Drat, I hope she doesn't realize that I'm not hungry because I just ate a plate of cookies that Muffy gave me," _he thought to himself.

Leia gave him a smile. "That's alright, I understand. You can take it with you and eat it later," she said, trying to keep the disappointment from her voice.

Jack walked over and picked up the cake and gave the mermaid a smile. "Thank you for taking the time to make this cake for me. I'll be sure to have some tomorrow."

"That's perfectly fine. I hope your stomach feels better soon."

"I'm sure I'll be fine. I just need a bit of rest, that's all," he replied. "I'll see you later Leia." He said, giving her a quick wave with his free hand before heading up the stairs and out of the lab.

Leia smiled and climbed back into her tub. She happily swam down to her bed to lie down. _"That went perfectly!"_ she said to herself. _"Well, almost perfectly, anyway. I hope his stomach feels better soon." _She snuggled herself deeper into the softness of her kelp blankets. She smiled to herself as she closed her sky blue eyes and drifted off to sleep, hoping that a certain brown haired young man would visit her in her dreams.

_Whew, finally done! I like how this chapter turned out and I hope that every one enjoyed reading it as much as I had writing it. Till next time, Ja ne! _


	5. Starry Nights

_**A/N:**__ This story focuses on Leia and her life in Daryl's lab. _

_Thank you __**roxas-kh**__ for your nice review of the last chapter! I'm glad you liked it. _

_**Disclaimer:**__ I don't own Harvest Moon, so don't sue me. _

_**The Distant Sound of Waves**_

_**Chapter 5: Starry Nights**_

Leia woke up earlier than she usually did. Recently, her dreams had been interrupted by disturbing images of her in an inescapable trap. This had caused the mermaid to spend time considering just what her dreams might be telling her.

She stretched out her orange and purple tailfin and slipped out of her bed. She finned herself over to a large pink clamshell and opened it. Inside she removed her comb and set it to the side. She reached up and removed the purple seashell accents from her emerald green hair, then she set them down and picked up the comb. She then began to run the comb gently through her hair.

Once she was satisfied that her hair was tangle free, she returned the comb to its place inside the clamshell and placed the purple seashell accents back into her hair. She smiled to herself before turning and swimming up to the surface.

Daryl looked up from what he was working on in front of him when he heard the sound of his fishy quest breaking the surface of her tub. "Good morning Leia. You're looking well this morning."

Leia gave the scientist a smile. "Good morning to you to Daryl," she said before giving him a curious glance. "Is that another one of your experiments?" she asked curiously.

Daryl shook his head. "No, this is a gift I'm making for Flora. I'm planning on giving it to her at the Starry Night Festival," he answered, holding up a silver locket suspended from a gold chain.

"That's kind of you," Leia replied. "I'm sure Flora will be delighted to receive that from you." The mermaid's expression then changed to one of curiosity. "You said that you want to give her that at the Starry Night Festival, but what is a Starry Night Festival?"

"It's one of the most romantic festivals celebrated here in the valley," the scientist explained. "The day prior, either the guy or the girl invites their boyfriend or girlfriend to their home for a party. Many will also go for a walk together and gaze at the stars."

The mermaid nodded. It never occurred to her that the stars could have any sort of a romantic meaning. To those in the mermaid world, the stars were simply a way to navigate at night. She looked over at the scientist and sighed. "I wish that I could participate in that. It sounds very romantic!"

"I don't see a reason why you couldn't," Daryl replied. "Instead of you going to Jack's home, he could come here."

A smile filled the mermaid's face. "That would be nice!" she chirped happily. "I'll just have to wait and see if he drops by and asks me."

Daryl smiled back at the green haired girl and returned his attention to the gift. After a bit more fiddling he held up a small pink box wrapped with a light blue ribbon. "You're a girl Leia; would you like to receive a gift wrapped in this manner?"

"May I take a closer look?" she asked curiously.

Daryl nodded and walked over to the edge of the mermaid's tub and held out the box. Leia took it and carefully and began to inspect the package.

"It's quite lovely," the fishy girl said, handing the package back to the scientist. "I'm sure that Flora will like it."

Daryl took the box and placed it into the pocket of his white lab coat. "Well, I'm going to head over to the mine to visit Flora. I should be back in time for dinner."

Leia smiled. "Alright, have fun and say hi to Flora for me." She waved as she watched the man disappear up the stairs. Once she heard the door to the lab slam shut she pushed herself off of the edge of the tub and allowed herself to slowly sink into the warm water.

* * *

It was later in the afternoon when Leia heard the door to the lab open and close. She swam back up to the surface, expecting to see Daryl, but was surprised when she saw Jack turn the corner at the bottom of the stairs.

"Jack… I wasn't expecting to see you today," she said in surprise.

"I had some extra time and thought I'd stop by," the farmer answered. "I hope you don't mind."

The green haired mermaid shook her head. "Of course I don't mind! In fact, I'm happy that you stopped by."

Jack gave the girl a nervous smile. "Well, I can't really stay very long, but I wanted to stop by and say hi."

"That's fine," the fishy girl replied. "I understand you're busy with your farm and all."

The farmer quickly nodded in reply. "Yeah, it really does keep me hopping."

Leia swam over to the edge of her tub and gave her tailfin a kick, lifting herself up onto the edge of the tank. "Say Jack, Daryl was telling me something today," she said as placed her elbows on the edge of the tub and her hands on her cheeks. "He was telling me about the Starry Night Festival and I was wondering…"

Jack walked over to the pretty green haired girl and smiled at her. "You were wondering if I would like to go with you."

A bright blush filled the mermaid's cheeks. "Yeah, I was…" she stammered. "But I understand if you're busy. I mean, I know you have to care for your farm and all."

"Actually, I was thinking about asking you," the farmer replied. "However, since you can't leave your tub that might be something of a problem."

Leia sighed sadly. "I suppose… but maybe you could take me to the beach? We could watch the stars there."

Jack removed his cap and ran his hand through his hair. "I guess I could do something like that," he replied. "But that might compromise the fact that you are here," he added carefully.

Leia dipped her tailfin in the water and swished it around a little. "But it would be dark… and according to what Daryl told me, no one goes to the beach," she said in a hopeful tone.

Jack looked around the lab for a moment. "I don't know… it would only take one person seeing you to cause both of us a lot of problems."

A hurt look filled the girl's face. "Are you embarrassed to be seen with me?" she questioned intently.

The farmer shook his head vigorously. "No, no, that's not it at all. It's just that… well, it could cause problems…" he replied nervously.

The mermaid nodded slowly. "I understand," Leia said softly. "But maybe you could stop by for a visit?" she asked in a hopeful tone. She watched as the farmer shuffled nervously in place, avoiding her gaze. "Jack, is there something wrong?"

"No, why would you ask?" he questioned, trying to sound innocent.

"You just seem a little nervous to me," she answered. "Is there something wrong with your farm that you're not telling me about?"

The farmer paused for a moment. "Well, I was having some trouble with one of my cows..." he replied nervously, averting his eyes from the mermaid in front of him.

Leia pushed herself off of the edge of the tub and allowed herself to slip into the warm salt water up to her neck. "If you say so Jack. I hope your cow will be alright," she said softly.

"Thanks," he replied giving her a smile. "Well, I have to get back to the farm. I'll try to stop by for a visit on the Starry Night Festival."

Leia returned the brown haired young man's smile. "That would be nice of you, Jack."

"Sure, no problem Leia. See you later," he said, giving her a quick wave before heading up the stairs and out of the lab.

Leia turned and disappeared beneath the waters surface. She finned herself over to her bed and settled gently down on top of it. _"Was it just me… or did Jack seem like he wasn't telling me the truth?" _she wondered. _"He seemed nervous and didn't want to look me in the eyes when we were talking." _

* * *

The days before the Starry Night Festival passed quickly. As Daryl and Leia sat down to dinner, the young mermaid remained hopeful that she would be visited by a certain local farmer.

"Is there something troubling you, Leia?" Daryl asked curiously, noting the distant look in Leia's ocean blue eyes.

The mermaid nodded her head slowly. "No, nothing that I can really help that is…" she sighed sadly.

The eccentric scientist gave his fishy guest an intent look. "Does this have something to do with a certain brown haired farmer?"

"Yes it does," she answered. "When I asked him about the possibility of taking me to the festival, he seemed to avoid giving me a direct answer."

"Well, it is possible that he just might be busy with his farm."

"That's what he said when I pressed him on the issue," the green haired girl replied. "He said that he's having trouble with one of his cows."

Daryl gave her a wry look. "You don't believe him, do you?"

Leia gave the elder man a sigh. "No, I don't. He just seemed so nervous when he was talking and he wouldn't look me in the eyes when he spoke."

"I see," Daryl replied. "I can see how that would make you suspicious of him."

The mermaid remained silent as she finished the remains of the fish in front of her. She then stood up and made her way over to the sink, placing her dish inside. She looked over at Daryl, who was still seated at the table.

"I hope that you and Flora have a wonderful evening," she said softly before climbing back over the edge of her tub and into the water.

The scientist pushed his plate away and removed the red and white checkered napkin that had been tucked into the front of his shirt and stood up. He walked over to the edge of the mermaid's tub and looked inside. "He still may show up you know."

Leia broke the surface in the middle of her pool and looked back at her host. "I suppose… but I don't think he will."

"Why wouldn't he?" the scientist questioned. "You are a special friend to him after all."

"Am I really a special friend to him? Or am I just some kind of a unique novelty to him?" she spat out. "I somehow think he just might be more interested in that girl from that bar, Muffy."

"Stop over thinking things," Daryl countered. "Why would he visit you and give you gifts if he was interested in another?"

Leia thought about what Daryl had just said. "I guess you're right. I mean, why would he string me along like that?"

"That's it exactly!" Daryl exclaimed. "I wouldn't worry Leia; I have a feeling that you will be seeing him tonight."

The mermaid gave the elder man a smile. "Thanks Daryl. I'm feeling a little better now."

"I'm glad to hear that," the scientist said before heading back over to the table to pick up his plate. "I have to go now. I'm going to meet Flora at the Inn and we are going for a nice walk together."

"That sounds nice," Leia replied.

"I hope Flora will think so as well," Daryl said as he headed towards the stairway. "I might not be back until late, so I'll wish you a good night now."

"Thank you Daryl. I hope you have a good time and I'll see you in the morning!"

Daryl gave the green haired girl a wave before heading up the stairs and pushing open the door of the lab and stepping out into the fading sunlight.

Leia made her way over to the sink and began to wash the dishes. Once they had been washed and dried, she returned them to their place in the cabinet. She looked up at the window, noting that the sun had just about set. _"The stars are out now…" _She sighed softly. _"I wonder where Jack is…" _

Leia didn't know how much time had passed when she heard the door to the lab open and close. A quick glance out the window told her that night had completely fallen across the valley. She watched intently as the person descended into the basement. A smile filled her face as Jack turned the corner and gave her a wave.

"Good evening Leia!"

"Hi Jack!" the mermaid chirped back. "I'm happy that you decided to stop by."

The farmer smiled back at the mermaid and reached into his backpack, pulling out a ruby red broach. "Here, I brought this gift for you!" he said, handing the broach to the girl.

"Oh my, it's so pretty! Are you sure I can have it?"

"Of course, why else do you think I would give it to you?" he replied with a chuckle.

"Thank you Jack, it's very nice."

"You're welcome. I'm glad you like it," he replied. "I found it the other day while I was in the mine and I figured that it would make a nice gift for you."

The mermaid smiled. "That was very thoughtful of you," she said with a grin. "Can I get you something to drink or a snack?"

"Um, no that's not really necessary," Jack answered plainly. "I really can't stay all that long anyway."

"Oh, why is that?" Leia asked curiously. "Do you have somewhere else to go, or more to the point, someone else to meet?"

"I don't know what you're referring to," Jack retorted. "What are you accusing me of?"

"Nothing at all, I was just wondering was all," Leia replied. "Recently whenever you've come for a visit, you've seemed nervous and distracted, almost like you were worried that someone might see you here with me. You know someone with blonde hair, who wears a red dress."

"Do you mean Muffy?" Jack shot back.

Leia nodded. "Yes, I mean her."

Jack gave her a stern look. "What would make you think that I was going to meet up with Muffy once I leave here?"

Leia shook her head. "Look Jack, it's no secret that you are friends with her," she began. "Add to that the fact that I cannot leave the confines of the lab. To me, it all adds up," she added, flipping her tailfin violently into the water, splashing the farmer.

"Ah, what was that for?" he asked, wiping the dripping water from his hair.

The mermaid just shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. I just felt like doing it."

"Well, you didn't need to soak me." Jack replied. "Now I do have to go back to my farm."

"So you weren't going back, just as I thought."

"Um… ah, it's really not what you're thinking Leia. I was going to meet up with Rock and maybe head over to the Blue Bar," Jack stammered.

"Do you expect me to believe that?" Leia demanded.

"Yeah sure, why would I be lying?" Jack retorted.

"First, you expect me to believe that you aren't seeing anyone else for the Starry Night Festival," she began. "Second you say that you are going to the Blue Bar, right? Well it seems rather convenient that Muffy happens to work there."

Jack's face flushed with anger. "You know what; I can do what I want to. It's not like you're my girlfriend or anything!"

A hurt look filled the mermaid's face. "Is… is that really what you think?" she asked, turning her back on the brown haired young man and Jack fell silent

"I think you should leave," she said before disappearing beneath the water.

"Yeah, I think I will," Jack said in an angry tone. "To think, I wasted my time even stopping here…" he added before turning and leaving.

Leia swam down to her bed and buried her face in her pillow and for the first time since she'd come to the human world she cried. All this time, she had thought that she was Jack's girlfriend. But now, she realized that she was wrong. And that was a blow to her little mermaid heart. It was as though it had shattered into many pieces.

_So what did you think? As always, please feel free to leave me your thoughts and comments in a review. Until next time, Ja ne! _


End file.
